NEW DELHI: Set up after the Modi government took office in May 2014, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) began carefully by taking baby steps like finding office space, arranging for logistics and infrastructure to make the newest kid on the block click. 
After two-and-a-half years of becoming operational, the Minister of State Rajiv Pratap Rudy who has independent charge of the MSDE can boast of taking big strides in setting up skill training centres across the country, turning around Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and making youth employable in a number of sectors. The MSDE has trained more than 1.17 crore aspirants in various skills since the inception of Skill India. This is apart from the numbers contributed through skill development schemes and initiatives under other Central Ministries.
Keenly aware of the cut-throat competition among job seekers, Mr. Rudy’s ministry is setting out new standards to vastly improve the quality of  new standards that would go a long way in revamping and toning up the quality of training being given in ITIs. 
“In July we are notifying new norms regarding building, equipment, training which all ITIs will have to confirm to,ÂÂ Mr Rudy said here on Tuesday while addressing a press conference to mark the completion of the Modi Government’s three years in office.There are nearly 13,000 ITIs and the government wants them to do self-grading on at least 48 parameters. 
Mr Rudy said the policy makers had, over the years, done injustice to the ITIs, leading to deterioration in their quality, but his ministry was determined to see that the students passing out of ITIs come out well equipped both academically and technically.
Mr Rudy described his Ministry as  ”really a start up venture as it came into existence only two-and-half-years ago, but it had during this short period put up skill development infrastructure across the country.” The Minister said that industry linkage to skill development was the biggest challenge.
He said the Government had committed Rs 26000-crore for the Ministry.He said that his biggest partnership was with the Indian Army, which was the third largest in the world and whose 55000 personnel retire every year. The Ministry had trained 26000 retired Army personnel so far in various skills. 
Speaking about the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme as  being crucial for creation for a skilled workforce, he said the number of apprentices in India was very low as compared to other countries like Germany and Japan but the Government was now taking effective steps to see that companies took in more apprentices.
He said that India has partnered with 11 countries, including Germany, France , UK, Australia and China, in the skills agenda for training its workforce.These skilling will be in 86 trades at par with the transnational standards. 
Mr. Rudy said that Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), launched on July 15, 2015, alone has witnessed more than 26.5 lakh people getting trained in skills of their choice till date, of which 50 per cent are women candidates.
ÂThe industry and private sector will only partner when they see quality workforce coming out from Skill India. We are seeing that transition happen gradually. More and more corporate are partnering with us on different levels whether is it on engaging with apprentices, extending infrastructure support, contribution through CSR funds and hiring of resources.  
On keeping a check on fraudulent practices, Mr. Rudy said that a handful of organizations claiming to be PMKVY agencies promising jobs to unemployed youth were taking money and duping the youth in the name of MSDE. “Such advertisements were found more in vernacular dailies. We condemn such practices and have filed FIRs against them,” he said while cautioning the public at large to be vary of such frauds and join the right affiliated centres. 
The ministry officials stated that the effort was to move away from the supply driven skill development scenario to demand driven one.  More than 480 Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendras have been announced which would be model centres for skilling and would be in each district of the country and 162 are already been established. The officials said that more than 1381 new ITIs have been opened with nearly half a million seats. 
To cater to the increasing demand for drivers, MSDE also launched Driver Training institutes across India with the target to open 50 of them by this year-end.